The River
by JuJuBe111
Summary: Mort's suicide attempt is foiled by a little old Asian man who takes him on as an assistant at his dojo. Better than it sounds. Rated T for language. You know me, I'm worse than a sailor! New name: the laws of transitivity
1. Chapter 1

**The River**

**I don't own the X-ies**

**A.N. This takes place after the Liberty Island incident.**.

Chapter 1: Attempt Foiled

_I'm a nothing. A failure. Isn't that right? Look at me. I'm a freak. I can't even fight right! I was beaten by a trecherous pansy-assed mutant. I can't build. My machine failed. The two things I ever prided myself in are gone. I've nowhere to go. Magneto's gone, and even if he did come back, what would he want to do with such a horrible failure? The outside world will have nothing to do with a freakish green monster. And I'd rather die than betray my own kind like the X-Men. So there's what I have to do. Nobody will miss the freak. The failure. The nothing._

With that in mind, Mortimer Toynbee gave one last mournful look over the rushing river, and gave the bars on the outside of the bridge a gentle squeeze. He looked up to the clouded sky, murmering one of the prayers he had learned at the orphanage all those years ago. The greenish fingers opened away from the cold metal, his eyes closed, his arms spread, and...

"Oof!" _Oof? _He was suspended above the water. _Death is right there! Ten feet from me! And here I am in the bloody air. Oof indeed!_

"I've got you!" yelled the unknown hero-figure above him. It was a man.

"Aww, fuck off, will ya? I's a big city! Lot's of bridges, and lot's of depressed nutters. Go on and play good samaratin elsewhere, awright?"

"Nice try. I'm pulling you up." Mort was slowly lifted from the air by the back of his shirt. He was soon standing on the outside of the bridge again, and looked down at the water longingly. A tug on his shirt told him that another attempt would do no good. The mutant sighed, and heaved himself over the bar.

Finding himself face to face with a little ancient Asian man, he tried to rid himself of the pest. "Boo."

The petite old guy gave a chuckle, and put a comforting arm around the put-out green man. "Alright, I get it! You've had enough of me, is that right? I'll just take you home now. Might I ask where home is?" Mort jerked his head back to the rushing water. "Well then it seems you'll have to come home with me, doesn't it?" He gave another small chuckle, and hailed a cab.

The man's insistance took Mort completely by surprise. "You really don' 'ave to, you know... I can find a 'otel..."

"Nonsense! I can't leave a guy alone after an incident like that! No, you'll stay with me for the time being." He held open the cab door. "I'm Hiroshi Yamada. And you?"

"Toad," said the mutant firmly. Why the hell wasn't this man afraid of him? He just sat there, jabbering on as if he was a normal person. He felt a little naked without his hoodie to hide his face from people.

"No! None of those nonsensical code names! What's your REAL name?"

Mort glared at the seat in front of him. "Mortimer Toynbee," he muttered, "Call me Mort."

"Pleased to meet you, Mort! Goro," he referred to the cab driver, whose name badge incidentally read "Akio", "you can drop us off here. I'd like to have a little walk before I get home. "Oh dear, where have I put my wallet?"

The cab driver was Asian as well, and turned around. "I'm Akio, Hiroshi. My father is retired. It's okay. I know you good for it. You pay me back, right?" He had an accent, unlike Hiroshi. _He knows the cab driver?_

"Thank you, Goro." They slid out of the car, and Mort looked up into...

China Town.

Hiroshi set off down the block. "That Goro is such a good man. Always looking out for me!" When his guest raised an eyebrow, he answered, "Him and his son live in my building."

They walked down the block at a leisurly pace, while Hiroshi informed Mort about every shop and person in the Japanese section of China Town. To his surprise, nobody on the street gave him more than a lingering gaze. "And this," he said with a voice full of pride, "is my dojo! I'm a martial arts instructor!"

Mort's eyes glazed over. "Really? I love martial arts."

"You're into martial arts!" The man's creased eyes filled with glee. "What do you know?"

"I'm a black belt in everything I've 'eard of," said Mort immodestly.

"Wonderful! Oh, see? The Lord does reward our deeds!" He clapped his hands together happily, looking to the sky. "I've been looking for a new assistant trainer!"

Mort looked quizically up at the sky, as if to say, "Wha' the fuck? I asked to die, and you give me 'im?" He looked down. "If you need an assistant, I'm looking for work."

"Yes, yes! You must stay!"

"So why don't you have an accent?" he said suddenly.

"Oh well I was born here. My parents were immigrants." They were walking again.

Soon they'd arrived at a tall brick building, and stepped inside. At number fifteen, Hiroshi fumbled for his keys. The first one wouldn't work. "Well that's odd. I'm sure that it's this one. See? I label them so I can remember." Sure enough, it read "Apartment". He gave it another try before the door came swinging open.

A tall young woman stood in the doorway. "Sumimasen, Hiroshi-san!" (Sorry, Mr. Hiroshi!) she said brightly, "This is my apartment, remember? You are in number sixteen across the hall."

"Hai. I remember now. Arigatou gosaimasu, Jin-chan." (Yes. I remember now. Thank you very much, Miss Jin.) He turned across the hall.

"Iie, it's not a problem. Itterasshai!" (No, it's not a problem. Take care!)

Mort didn't move out of confusion. "Erm..." he started.

"Are you a friend of Hiroshi-san?" she asked.

"San...? Um... I'm Mort. I'm staying with him as an assistant for the dojo."

"Pleased to meet you. I am Jin Hayakawa." He nodded, then followed his host into number sixteen.

**I hope you like this one, 'cause it's really fun to write. Old people are so entertaining... heehee! Review or be forever covered in sticky tak!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I don't own Toad or the X-Men, but most of the characters in this story are ALL MINE!**

**A.N. Thanks for the reviews!**

Chapter 2:

"You can stay in my old assistant's room." Hiroshi was giving Mort a tour of the apartment, although the mutant trailing behind him was still in a slight daze from the speed at which he had been pulled into the new home. "You don't have any things with you do you?" Mort shook his head. "Well you'll have to go out and do that tomorrow, but for tonight I have a few things." Mort followed him into a room where the little man started rifling through a cabinet. "Through my years of martial arts training, my students have left a good amount of clothing in my dojo. Most of them are pretty small, but then you aren't too big yourself..." Sitting on the bed, he blushed a bit. He was pretty self-conscious about his hight. A pair of karate training sweats and a T-shirt were thrown at the unsuspecting newcomer over Hiroshi's back.

The whole situation had made Mort extremely uncomfortable. _WHY ISN'T ANYONE HERE WEIRDED OUT BY THE GREEN MAN!_ "Umm... Hiroshi? Why isn't anyone...?"

"Afraid of you? Boy, the Japanese section of China Town has been a safe-haven for mutants since there were mutants. The majority of Japanese are mutated, you know. They say it has something to do with living closer to a nuclear ground zero than any other population. This neighborhood is the headquarters of the mutant underground railroad."

A pair of yellow eyes went wide. "Are you...? And Jin...?"

"Do you think any other eighty year old man could lift a full grown man over a bridge?" He gave the small chuckle that he used so often. "Let me show you something." He walked over to the light switch, and turned off the hanging lamp that lit the room.

At first there was total darkness, then a hand-shaped light glowed from the other side of the room. Next, there was a blinding light as Hiroshi's entire body lit up with a steady glow. Mort grinned. "Cool..." The light went back on, and Hiroshi returned to normal.

"Jin has super-sonic hearing. She can probably hear us," he dropped his voice into a whisper, "right now." He sat on the bed now. "So why was a nice guy like you trying to leap off a bridge? Depressed 'cause nobody accepts your mutant abilities?"

"Naw. I just 'ad no place ta go. The last place I was with go' dissolved, and I was upset. Tha's all."

"Really? What organization? I know most of them."

"Umm... well you see, i' wasn' an entirely legal group."

"Most aren't."

Mort gave the man a long look. He had a wise, trusting look in his eyes. "The Brotherhood of Mutants."

"Well I suppose I don't have to ask how it dissolved," he laughted. Hiroshi stood and left Mort in the room to dress.

**That chapter was just to get questions out of the way. REVIEW ANYWAYS!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks to my reviewers! I would appreciate some more, but... Flames welcome!**

**I just fixed this chapter. Sorry about randomly calling Jin "Lin". I totally spaced and started using a name from one of my old Fruits Basket fanfitions.**

**I don't effing own the X-Men. Stop asking me!**

**Onwards!**

Chapter 3:

As his yellowish eyes snapped open, Mort looked at the ceiling confusedly. He sat up, and looked around at the room surrounding him. After a few seconds, he was fully aware of where he was staying, but the room looked much different by day. There were shelves of gleaming trophies for all manner of martial arts accomplishments, and every one had "Hiroshi Yamada" engraved at the bottom. The walls were a dull white, but it was hard to notice it with all of the various posters of dojo masters splayed across them. It looked a bit like Mort's old room, but without the disassembled electronics everywhere.

He gave a grin, but then as he looked down at the borrowed clothes it turned to a grimace. He'd have to stop back by home today.

He'd slept in without meaning to. It was already nine o'clock, and he normally woke at seven or eight. Sitting on the edge of his bed, the green man rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"Good Morning, Mort!" yelled an oriental woman from the kitchen. _Jin must've heard me,_ he mused. Pulling on the battle pants he'd been wearing for the past week and a half, a grimace crossed his face. The shirt was too gross to even consider wearing. (A.N. Okay, I admit it. I just wanted him with his shirt off. Happy!)

In the kitchen sat Jin in a silky kimono and a clothed Hiroshi, sipping at tea. Mort's heart lept. _Tea! Not-American tea!_ Hiroshi saw the look of glee on his face. "Oh yes, the British appreciate good tea too, don't they? Well go on and sit down, and I'll get you a glass."

Mort did as he was told. Jin gave him a grin. "So you be helping at the dojo, ne?"

He nodded. "I've been doing martial arts since I can remember. It's really a thing tha' I can ge' another job tha' I can use 'em in."

She grinned at him. "They a' no coincidences in dis wo'd. (There are no coincidences in this world.) So you be hewping us wid de undaground too? (So you'll be helping us with the underground too?)"

"The underground? You mean the mutant underground railroad? Well you folks 'ave gotten me ou' of more'n one problem. I'd be ecstatic." He took some tea from Hiroshi, and took it in slowly. After years of crude, bagged American tea, even the foreign taste of this tea brought him back to Britain. No matter how many bad memories it held, he would always be a Britain boy at heart. Always.

"Mort, I need to go out to get some groceries. Will you be alright here with Jin?" asked Hiroshi who was wandering around looking under and behind things.

"Yes, bu' I prolly won' be here when you ge' back. I need to stop by me old base to pick up clothes and such."

"Of course. And Jin, you'll need to get to work then. I'll leave a key in the plaque on the door. There's a keyhole on the back of it. Lin, have you seen my keys?"

"Have you checked yo pockets?"

"Ah, right. There they are. I'll get going now..." He paused at the door, a look of frustration on his smile-creased face.

Jin took a softer look to her face. "Have fun at the _grocery store_, Hiroshi."

He smiled, and walked out the door.

"Say, Jin," said Mort, "Does Hiroshi have any... you know..."

"He is just getting owd. Needs some reminding now and then."

Mort nodded. "I should prolly be setting off then. It's been nice chatting with you, Jin."

"Hai. I shoud get dwessed fo' work now." She ducked her head, and left the room.

l-l-l-

He had once again reluctantly pulled on the nasty, sweaty hoodie, and was heading down to a small airfield. "Oy, Tom!" he called into the overcrowded hanger, "Tommy-boy, it's Mort!"

A freakishly skeletal man that sat at about seven and a half feel tall stuck his head out from behind a plane. "Mort!" He rushed over and gave the green man a hearty hug. "Man, I thought you were dead! Where the hell've you been!"

"Streets, mostly."

"Aww, tough luck, man. You know I'd offer you a place to stay if I could, but me 'n Lauren just ain't got no more room! We already have all the kids sharing two rooms, and with another one on the way..."

"I's awright, Tommy. I know 'ow it is. Besides, I go' me a job and board in China Town."

"China Town?"

He nodded. "Japanese neighborhood. Assistant trainer at the dojo, and uh..." he dropped to a whisper, "a little spot in the underground..." His friend's eyes widened. "So Lauren's pregnant again!"

"Yup! Six months along now! I'm hopin' it's a girl for her sake. I mean, nine boys might be a little more than she could take."

Mort chuckled. "I can't remember the last time I saw the kids. How're they all doin' now?"

"Alan's sixteen now, and has yet to come out of the closet. I found some magazines in his room, though, so I'm sure of it by now. Tyler just got his first signs of mutation. That makes four of them now! Near as I can tell, he's a camouflager. Jack's still purple, so we figure it probably won't go away..." the spindly guy gave a giggle, "But I doubt you're here to talk about all them. What's up?"

"I'm gonna need my 'copter for the day. Headin' to the island to get some stuff."

"Ah, yeah. It's over here, collecting dust."

Mort gave his friend a good hug, a thank you, and took off.

l-l-l-

To some, the island would have looked creepy, but to the web-fingered man who gave it a lopsided grin, it was a haven. A haven that was now a lost cause. The chopper pulled smoothly into the enormous cavern of a hangar, and he hopped out.

Within a few minutes, he was back in his old familiar room, littered with miscellaneous martial arts trophies, posters of the masters, and dissected electronics. How was he supposed to decide on what was important?

His toothbrush, gel, ultra-sensitive shampoo, ultra-sensitive soap, and green hair dye were necessities. His battle suit, training suit, and everyday clothes were coming, and by now the duffel on his bed was half full. CDs, tools, and electronics blueprints took up most of the rest. On top of all that, he put things that, at the risk of sounding sentimental, he couldn't leave: A picture of him, Mystique, Sabertooth, and Magneto looking like some odd sort of family; The trophy from the first major competition he had won; A little necklace.

The necklace was a small silver chain with a tiny engraving of Saint Germaine Cousin hanging from it. One of the nuns at the orphanage gave it to him when he was quite young. Saint Germaine was born with a tiny deformed hand, so her parents shunned and abused her. The townsfolk ridiculed her.

"But she was given God's grace, and sits in heaven today." Mort echoed the voice of Sister Agnes as it had spoken to him so many years ago. Such kind words she had spoken. He sighed, and zipped the bag.

**I really wanna know what you all think, mmmmkay? So if you'll please, please review, that would be super!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Okay, I know the story has been oddly paced so far, but once I get into the underground scenes, I promise it'll become as normal as you can expect from me.**

**Gremblin: You are such a faithful reviewer! Hugs to you! By the way, how do you manage to get sticky-tak in your hair?**

**Kimi Kada: So far I've just been setting up the plot for the story. It's gonna get better, though.**

**Ed's Tomato: I'll still attack you with sticky-tak if you don't start UPDATING. NOW UPDATE!**

**Riye Link Reue: Well I know that a lot of people living near Hiroshima and Nagasaki were mutated, so, being the obsessive freak I am, I though "MUTATED! MUTATED LIKE TOAD!"**

**Crystalwish: I love him too! Hey, wanna help me kidnap Toad? Well, Ray Park, but CLOSE ENOUGH!**

**Solita: Well he'll still be working in the underground. I couldn't have him completely straight with the law, now could I?**

**DJ Atomica: Thanks for reviewing! I'm gonna give you reviewing lessons, k? You're supposed to either tell me how horrible my story is or start rambling about how sexy Mort is. Or is it just us crazies that do that? Oh well! Thanks!**

**To the storyyyyy!**

Chapter 4:

The image in the mirror brought Mort back five years. A black belt sashed around his waist, white cloth pants, and sweat bands on each wrist. He normally would have to train with his shirt on to hide his skin pigment, but Hiroshi insisted that all of his pupils were mutants and therefore wouldn't care. (A.N.: Again, just a ploy to have him shirtless. That six pack is so damn irresistible!)

Once he had joined Magneto, all of his training was combat-style in the Brotherhood's Danger Room. The year before that, he was on the streets, and too sickly and weak to train even if he had a place to do so. No, not since the orphanage had he worn real a real karate uniform. He cracked his neck, and headed into the main room.

"My first class will be arriving shortly, Mort- younger children. They're just getting into the basics." Hiroshi motioned to a pile of pads and re-breakable boards. (A.N. They're nice, but they just don't give the satisfaction of real wood.) He unlocked the front door. "Oh, and Mort," the little man added, "Try to be pleasant."

Mort decided right away that he liked this job. The kids were... adorable! There were a few with physical mutations, but for the most part the little ones still had no clue what their abilities would be. They ranged in age from an extremely good-humored two-year-old boy to a six-year-old girl with black scales down her arms and legs.

The youngest was one of the green man's favorites. He was helping him as they practiced with round kicks. He sat there, holding up a pad for him to aim at, but the little guy couldn't seem to keep his balance. He picked up his leg, aimed, kicked, and spun around to the floor. A fit of giggles hit him before he even hit the ground.

For mutants, all of the children looked exceptionably happy. This, Mortimer supposed, was because they were all accepted in this society. How nice that there was still somewhere in this world that children could walk through walls without being shunned.

He worked for a while with one child who had, though still underdeveloped, huge feathery wings sprouting from her shoulder blades. This made it exceptionally hard for them to do some of the back-punches, so Mort took her aside and they came up with new backwards attacks for her using her wings.

The whole experience that day was enough to regrow the mutant's faith in society.

l-l-l-

It was seven o'clock when the fourth group of students filed out for the day. Mort slumped down onto the ground. He hadn't had a more rewarding day in his entire life.

"Now's the fun part," assured Hiroshi. Mort lifted a weary eyebrow. _That wasn't fun?_ "Come on." The little man jerked his head towards the back of the dojo. He unlocked and opened a door that his assistant had taken for a closet door, and started down the steps that it revealed. _The Underground._

"Now," continued the dojo master as he and Mort descended into the basement, "The Underground isn't all about lending beds to mutants in need. We also train young mutants so that they may be accepted into larger organizations, or perhaps continue on working in the Underground. Around seven thirty, we teach my favorite class." He glowed with light to allow the new inductee to see the training area below. "The teenagers."

The basement was a Danger Room. Much lower tech than the Brotherhood's, but it was distinguishable right away. Mort rushed down to examine the equipment.

"I see you are familiar with Danger Rooms?" mused Hiroshi.

"I built the one at the Brotherhood," supplied the busy-handed young man.

"Then I suppose you'll want to upgrade ours?" the other chuckled, watching as Mort had already begun tweaking wires and such.

Mort looked up suddenly. "You don't mind, do you?"

Hiroshi shook his head amusedly, and started setting up for the next lesson. "We currently have seven young mutants," he informed.

When the first of the students walked in, Mort could find no immediate signals of mutation. "Hiroshi-sensei?" called the boy.

"Ah! Roka-kun!" called out Hiroshi, "Irasshai! (Welcome) I want you to meet my new assistant, Mort-sensei. His field name is Toad."

The child extended a hand. "I am Roka. They also call me futtou- boiling."

Taking his hand, the older mutant asked, "An' why would they call you tha'?" A sharp pain engulfed the green fingers as he jerked them away from Roka's steaming hand. "I see. Oh, and please don' call me sensei. Japanese name denotations never did make sense to me. Do you mind if I jus' call you Roka? I'm bound to forget anyways..."

In a matter of minutes, two girls entered the basement. The second was Japanese, but the first had skin of deep mocha. "Master Hiroshi!" called the first. The pair clomped down the stairs, and the girl then turned to Mort. "Oh, and who are you? Has Master Hiroshi taken you in?"

"In a manner of speaking," he returned, "I'm your new assistant trainer. Name's Mort, code-name Toad."

"Janet," she said confidently, "Code-named Spike."

"An' I'm sure I can guess why," he said, noting the spikes that erupted from her lower arms, "And who are you?" He looked at the shy, haunting looking girl who seemed to hide behind her friend. Her eyes showed such... fear. She remained silent.

"That would be Toshi," said Hiroshi reappearing from a storage room, "She can't speak. Well, she can-she understands English well enough-, but... it's no good. Her field name is Kinen. Memory. When she speaks, people relive their strongest- and usually most painful- memories. Such a burden she carries, isn't that right, Toshi? She has to see them all." The girl gave a tentative nod before signing something to Janet.

"She says that it's nice to meet you, Mort."

"Nice to meet you too, Toshi." There was something about that girl. She had seen the darkest demons to be passed. The pain of memories.

Mort tore his eyes away to see the next three coming in. Two more Japanese boys, and a Hispanic girl.

"Youkoso! (Nice to see you!) Children, come meet my new assistant, Mort. He does not wish to bother with Japanese name denotations, which is understandable, ne? Yes," he led foreword one of the boys who was exceptionably short. "This is Raidon-kun, or Toonari-kun, thunder." The eccentric little man pushed the boy away as soon as he'd stepped foreword. The next boy he pulled foreword the next boy who was incredibly well built for someone his age. "Kentaro-kun is also known as Assaiki, or crusher." Mort was rather afraid that the boy might crush him. The girl was pulled foreword next. "Alejandra is Shift, our new teleporter." The young woman fazed out, and reappeared farther back. "And I should think her brother is somewhere around here... Philippe! Come on, now!" This confused the new guy a bit. He squinted his yellow eyes to see if maybe he just hadn't looked hard enough...?

"I told you," said a voice from the bottom of the stairs, a ways off, "to call me Phil." The boy apparated from the spot where the voice had been. His skin was entirely a dullish silver. Mort's heart went out to the boy- he knew what it was like to have an obvious mutation. The angst poured out of his young eyes. "So you're the new guy," he said resentfully, "You sick or something?" He snorted, and Mort attempted to stand taller. He failed. The colorless boy glared at him in challenge. "I'm Silver."

**Anyone who can keep the Japanese names straight is my hero. I'll have a little note of all the obscure names at the beginning from now on. Review so I don't have to run you over with emus!**


	5. Chapter 5: hello there!

**I never knew that Nyltiak could be so... persuasive (and by that I mean scary) when it comes to getting people to update.**

**Writer's... block...**

**Ah! The grass at camp gave me hives and they're all ITCHYYY!**

**The magical list of names ('cause Jubes likes to make things confusing):**

**Hiroshi: The senile guy that glows.**

**Jin: The neighbor with soooooooper hearing.**

**Tom: Mort's friend with many, many children.**

**Roka: Mutant in training (MIT ('cause I'm lazy)): Boiling- Gets steeeeeeeeeamy hot.**

**Janet: MIT: Spike- She gets SPIKEY. Who would have guessed!**

**Toshi: MIT: Memory- when she speaks, people relive their most painful memories.**

**Raidon: MIT: Thunder- just wait and see!**

**Kentaro: MIT: Crusher- super strength.**

**Alejandra: MIT: Shift- teleporter.**

**Phil: MIT: Silver- goes all invisiblish. Serious anger issues.**

**A el cuento! (Dat's Spanish!)**

Chapter 5:

"Phil, stop it." Alejandra had appeared between the new assistant and the snide young man. "We all know that you're a dumb ass with a bad attitude. You have nothing left to prove."

Mort was tempted to applaud the girl, but felt it would only worsen the situation. Silver glared. "You used to be cool, sis."

"You used to be nice." Everyone watched the siblings awkwardly until Toshi stepped up, and placed a soft hand on Phil's shoulder. He looked from her about-to-cry face to his sister's.

"Well aren't we gonna start training? You getting too old for this job or something, Master Hiroshi?"

Hiroshi grinned. "All right. I believe that Raidon-kun was going first today. Everyone but him leave the room now." They sat outside the room, and Mort set a couple of obstacles at him. "Set the soundproof, as well," added Hiroshi.

A hologram gun fired a shot at Thunder, and he quickly did a back flip out of the line of fire. His eyes focused; his hands raised into the air. The whole room shook, and the obstacles shattered. At first, Mort thought that maybe he caused earthquakes like Avalanche, but realized soon enough that he was making sonic pulses. It was a little like Banshee or Siren, but his must have been a low frequency. The green man nodded in approval, and set the room to shake more, so that Raidon lost his balance. The teens behind him laughed.

l-l-l-

It was about ten o'clock, and the group of them were disappearing slowly. Mort sat on the stoop of the dojo, hugging his knees loosely. He didn't look at Janet when she sat next to him. "You're good," she said, "I learned a lot today."

He looked into the dark street, for once not afraid to go outside without his hoodie. "This place," he said, "isn' real. It's jus' a dream. I walked down the street today withou' hiding my face, and nobody threw things. Nobody stared."

She nodded. "It's still not perfect, but it's the best we have. There's still pain in being one of us. This dream may keep us safe from the outside world, but it still hurts. I mean, look at Toshi. Every time she speaks, people start sobbing. And Phil just hates everything, and Alex has to deal with that."

"Yeah, wha's up with 'im?"

"Him and Alex are twins. They used to look a lot alike before... Well Phil never got over the fact that she got to be the beautiful one. Their parents tried to get rid of him, but not her. She ran away with him before they sent him to the orphanage. The two of them float around beds in the underground. I got lucky. Toshi's parents took me in."

"It's a good thing he go' ou' of the whole orphanage thing. They aren' too keen on our kind there. I was in one fer most of my childhood."

"Sucks," she muttered, "I think me and Toshi should get home now." She stood.

He nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow, Janet."

"Night, Mort."

**Wee! Useless background information! But the suspense is building in secret! It is! Just trust me, mmmmmk? I'll give you some Skittles if you review! Yeah, that's right, SKITTLES! YOU CANNOT RESIST THE SKITTLEY ALLURE!**


	6. Chapter 6

**It really is fun to write this fic.**

**Gremblin: Oh, but I can't let him be completely happy, now can I? BWAHAHA!**

**ToadMorty: Do I? I thought I was a little OOC, but YAY you don't think so! So happy!**

**Kimi Kada: It was short 'cause I'm lazy!**

**The magical list of names ('cause Jubes likes to make things confusing):**

**Hiroshi: The senile guy that glows.**

**Jin: The neighbor with soooooooper hearing.**

**Tom: Mort's friend with many, many children.**

**Roka: Mutant in training (MIT ('cause I'm lazy)): Boiling- Gets steeeeeeeeeamy hot.**

**Janet: MIT: Spike- She gets SPIKEY. Who would have guessed!**

**Toshi: MIT: Memory- when she speaks, people relive their most painful memories.**

**Raidon: MIT: Thunder- Makes a low-frequency that makes things shake.**

**Kentaro: MIT: Crusher- super strength.**

**Alejandra: MIT: Shift- teleporter.**

**Phil: MIT: Silver- goes all invisiblish. Serious anger issues.**

**Let's read the story, now, shall we?**

Chapter 6:

Six weeks later:

The Mutant Training class sat with their trainers in the small sitting room in the basement of the dojo. All eyes were fixed on the large wooden TV that was at least twenty years old. Roka lay bare-chested across half of one of the couches, making eggs on his stomach. Mort was sitting on the other half of the couch, eyes blank and wide. Raidon was perched on the back of the couch. Phil was right in front of the TV, but they could all see through him, so there were no complaints. Alejandra sat in a moth-eaten sitting chair with Janet on the arm, nervously making more holes in the chair without realizing it. Toshi sat on the ground in front of the chair, and Kentaro sat next to her. Jin was there in her uniform from the sushi house, and she and Hiroshi stood completely still behind the chair.

The Mutant Registration Act had been revised, rewritten, and now sat in front of the President once again. The news cameras were all focused on their reporter, who was quickly speaking with fevered anticipation in front of a podium. A man stepped out to the podium, and cleared his throat.

"The Mutant Registration Act has been..." The group unconsciously leaned forward in unison. "...passed."

Roka's eggs fell to the floor without notice as he rose from his position. Phil apparated and ran to his sister, who was sobbing. Raidon made a small tremor when he let out an ominous sigh. Toshi's hand went to Kentaro's arm as he wept without shame. Mort swore loudly, got up, and nearly kicked a hole in the wall.

"We all knew it would come, Mort," said Jin, "We just didn't believe it."

"All mutants will be required to report to their nearest post office, public school, or library. Robotic gene sensors will be monitoring the streets to collect mutants who refuse to comply with the terms of the Mutant Registration Act."

"Children, you are not to leave the dojo," said Hiroshi, "Your parents will be summoned and brought to their nearest Underground station. You will meet with them when the time is right." He turned to the man with his face in his hands. "Mort, you and them get together some beds and such. Jin, contact the Underground. I'm going to go let people in." He turned up the stairs calmly.

"Oy!" said Mort, "You lot!" His words froze as he looked down at the crying, shocked teens. "It's all gonna go on awright. If they catch any one of you, I'll follow ya an' bring ya back myself. Nobody here'll be gettin' a number on their 'eads on my time."

"Damned normals!" cursed Phil, "I'll show you what's normal!" He flipped off the television. "They can't do this, Mort! This is America! People are supposed to be free!"

"So long as they're just like everyone else," added Roka bitterly.

"It's not fair!" sobbed Kentaro. Toshi hugged him tightly as if to say "I know. Just cry it out."

There was a small sleeping hall in the next room over. It held four queen size beds, six twin beds, and ten cots all crammed together so tightly that there was only one aisle down the middle of the room. Toshi, Roka, and Raidon were putting sheets on the beds as Alejandra popped in and out with new ones. Mort, Phil, Kentaro, and Janet were pulling cots out of the storage closet and setting them up with blankets in the rec room. They were expecting a full house.

"Hello?" called a woman's voice from the next room over. Mort stuck his head into the Danger Room to find a small hoard of people already gathering to come in. Most were Japanese, but some had apparently come to the Underground safehouse from outside the neighborhood. Sure enough, in the back of the room was...

"Alan!" shouted Kentaro's massive figure from behind him. The sensitive brute clomped over to Tom's son, and threw his great arms around the boy. "Thank God you guys got here! I was so worried about you!"

Alan looked up at his abnormally tall father. "Dad, I-"

"I know," said Tom serenely.

"What? How could you-?"

"You underestimate us," said a very pale, very pregnant woman beside Tom.

"Tom! Lauren!" shouted Mort, finally snapped out of the shock of Kentaro and Alan's relationship.

"Mort?" said Lauren, "I haven't seen you in so long! What are the chances?"

"Slim. C'mon now, people. Let's get you all beds. You all can stay in the sleeping hall. Kentaro, you will be sleeping on a cot. Out here." Kentaro and Alan blushed. Mort led the swarm of new arrivals into the room. Tom's family took up a queen size bed, and eight cots. A single Japanese mother and her three children took up two cots and two twin beds. Three young Mexican brothers- runaways- took up a queen size, and a Japanese couple with a daughter left only three twin beds and one queen left. They were really gonna be packing in.

In the end, most of the kids in twin beds had to double up, and Mort was left to the couch. The majority of the traffic had died down, but every once in a while a new family would walk in, looking scared as hell.

l-l-l-

That night, Mort lay on the couch, staring at the children around him. These children had the chance to grow up in the best place in the country for mutants. Now, the dream that had been here was gone. These children had nothing left. Nowhere to go. These young ones would grow up scared, and without hope. Why? Why must it go on like this?

**Hope ya liked it! Review or face my purple squirrels!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Let's keep the story moving, shall we? Angst away! Oh, and I'm giving up on the Japanese accent 'cause it's confusing and time-consuming.**

**BeastBoyBlitz: Yay! I've brianwashed another one! Yippee! You can be my new best friend, k?**

**Kimi Kada: Glad ya liked it! I want a purple squirrel when I grow up. If I ever grow up.**

**ToadMorty: Yay! Plushie! ((Huggling)) I love you toooo! Oh I wish my ears were pierced now! Who cares if my ears turn blue? Not me!**

**Halleyjo: Wow! I like Toad and cheese too! Now go like Toad and cheese while updating A Song for Someone Special!**

**Gremblin: Look! There's a purple squirrel! Oh, you missed it. Suuuuuspeeeeeeeeeense!**

**The magical list of names ('cause Jubes likes to make things confusing):**

**Hiroshi: The senile guy that glows.**

**Jin: The neighbor with soooooooper hearing.**

**Tom: Mort's friend with many, many children.**

**Lauren: Tom's really pregnant wife.**

**Alan: Tom's 16-year-old son. Kentaro's boyfriend.**

**Roka: Mutant in training (MIT ('cause I'm lazy)): Boiling- Gets steeeeeeeeeamy hot.**

**Janet: MIT: Spike- She gets SPIKEY. Who would have guessed!**

**Toshi: MIT: Memory- when she speaks, people relive their most painful memories.**

**Raidon: MIT: Thunder- Makes a low-frequency that makes things shake.**

**Kentaro: MIT: Crusher- super strength. Very emotional. Alan's boyfriend.**

**Alejandra: MIT: Shift- teleporter.**

**Phil: MIT: Silver- goes all invisiblish. Serious anger issues.**

Chapter 7:

By 8 A.M. the next morning, Mort's yellow eyes had snapped open. Hiroshi was talking to Jin quietly, and he was soon over to join them. "Wha's the plan o' action 'ere?" he slurred, still half asleep.

Jin smiled at him warmly. "Well I need to stay here to listen for military outside," she said, "And despite his claims, Hiroshi-san isn't good to do any foot work. We were hoping you and your friend could do the day's errands."

"Name it," said Mort eagerly, "I'll do anything." He reached for some tea.

Hiroshi nodded, gratefully. "You two will stay together at all times, ok?" Mort nodded. "Good. First, we need supplies. Ours will only last a few days with this many people. There's a tunnel leading to a mutant-friendly normal's house who will be getting us our supplies. Her name is Michelle Donnagin."

l-l-l-

The tunnel was filthy, and if Tom had been stuck at his normal size, he never would have fit in. He had shrunk down to about five foot and looked like a child, but he was more comfortable than his foul-mouthed friend. "Damned spider-webs!" Mort spat another one out of his mouth. "Fucking tunnel. Fucking Hiroshi making i' sound so easy!" He continued grumbling.

"Nice boxers, Mort," said Tom, "Could you manage to hike up yer shorts a bit?"

"If I could," grunted the man in front, "This tunnel would be larger, and I'd be tha' much less irritable."

"No, I'm pretty sure you'd bitch about it just as much," his friend mused, "I think you just like bitching. Does it make you feel happy?"

"Bloody estatic."

Tom pushed up Mort's shorts. "Dude, nobody wants to see that." Mort snorted, and cracked a smile.

The tunnel finally dumped off into a small room the size of a closet. There was a door on the other side of the room. Tom stretched to his usual size, and looked down at his green counterpart. "Do we knock?" Mort shrugged. Tom knocked.

"Oh shit!" called a voice outside, "Come on... in? I'll be just a second!"

The green man led them out into a very artsy looking living room. Two of the walls were deep red, and two were a vibrant purple. The carpet was black with red circles of rug every here and there. The back of the purple couch was wavy and uneven. A woman greeted the two in a few minutes, in jeans and a t-shirt, toweling her hair messily. "Sorry to make you wait! I just- OW!" she jumped up and down, trying to grab the stubbed toe.

"Umm," said Mort, "Are you Michelle?"

She looked up. "Yes, yes I am. And you are?" She stepped up to them.

"I'm Tom, and this is Mort." Tom was trying to duck through the cloths that were hanging so elegantly from the low ceiling, and finally decided to shrink a foot.

"Sorry about those," she said, "You don't need much ceiling space when you're just over five foot." She looked at them for a minute pleasantly. Then the staring started to creep Mort out.

"Erm..."

"Oh! Yes, sorry. I was just going off into my own world!" she giggled, "Supplies... Let's see I have the bags around here somewhere... ah ha!" She she pulled out six big bags loaded with supplies. "That should do you for a few weeks, right? How many do you have?"

Mort grinned at her. "Thirty eight."

She nodded serenely, then looked up suddenly. "Holy shit!" She pushed the bags on them. "There. That'll get you through a week."

Mort looked at her touseled wet rings of pink and purple dyed hair, and her eccentric black and white glasses. For some reason, she amused him greatly. Mutant-friendly or not, she was a normal, but he didn't despise her. It was really rather odd.

**Hey guess what happens to Michelle! If you can guess, I'll give you a biiiiig hug. Review at all, and I'll give you a hug! I like hugs!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Wow it's been a while since I updated this one! Praise me and my updating powers!**

**Gremblin: Aww, you wouldn't be in trouble. I like your stories too much! Go update!**

**Halleyjo: Heehee... doogs are funny. And, yes, I do mean doogs. You're not stupid, btw. You just need to go update your story. Now. GO!**

**The magical list of names ('cause Jubes likes to make things confusing):**

**Hiroshi: The senile guy that glows.**

**Jin: The neighbor with soooooooper hearing.**

**Tom: Mort's friend with many, many children.**

**Lauren: Tom's really pregnant wife.**

**Alan: Tom's 16-year-old son. Kentaro's boyfriend.**

**Roka: Mutant in training (MIT ('cause I'm lazy)): Boiling- Gets steeeeeeeeeamy hot.**

**Janet: MIT: Spike- She gets SPIKEY. Who would have guessed!**

**Toshi: MIT: Memory- when she speaks, people relive their most painful memories.**

**Raidon: MIT: Thunder- Makes a low-frequency that makes things shake.**

**Kentaro: MIT: Crusher- super strength. Very emotional. Alan's boyfriend.**

**Alejandra: MIT: Shift- teleporter.**

**Phil: MIT: Silver- goes all invisiblish. Serious anger issues.**

**Michelle: Normal; Supplies mutants with food and such.**

Chapter 8:

The group of mutants was getting crowded, restless, and more irritable every day. The babies cried, the children whined, the teenagers made out in the storage room. Things were getting hectic. Mort kept his sanity by a very small thread- his visits to Michelle.

It wasn't the normal herself that he enjoyed, he assured himself, but the getting out of the basement. The tunnel didn't annoy him so much after three days of traveling it, carrying requests, news, and supplies. First of all, the majority of the cobwebs had been dragged out in his hair and clothes the first two days, and secondly, he spent the trip up imagining what amusing things she would say. Thinking about her scatterbrained logic, and her outrageous fashion.

He denied all of this, of course. She was a normal.

Today, she was wearing a black skirt with beads hanging from the bottom so low that they swept along the floor, making a rattling sound. Her top had horizontal stripes of vibrant red, and faded red, that clashed astoundingly with her hair, which was held up by an exceptionally long paintbrush.

"Hello, Mort! How are things going down there? Can I get the latest gossip?" She gave an eccentric grin.

"Well Alan and Kentaro go missing more and more often, but tha's nothing new. I's murder getting into the bathrooms. Forget waiting until you 'ave to take a piss. If there's one open, you go. Plus, Lauren's in there every ten minutes just about." She laughed heartily. "Oh, and I think tha' Silver and Toshi 'ave a thing. I seen them smilin' at each other, an' then they're nowhere to be found."

"Jucy stuff!" she exclaimed. She let out a sigh of embarrassment. "I suppose it's pretty sad that I'm listening to high school gossip?"

"And I suppose tha' i's pretty sad tha' I'm tellin' it." He grinned.

"Oh! You need cough medicine!" she said quickly, and turned towards the kitchen. "Ah!" The arm of the couch caught her from behind, and she flipped onto the couch, legs in the air. Mort turned almost in time to miss the purple thong. She quickly righted herself, and rearranged her skirt. "Woops! _Not_ the panties I wanna be doing that in!"

Mort blushed violently. "Don' worry. I didn' see nuffin," he muttered.

She put on a serious face. "You know, you are _quite_ the gentleman. Not many men would lie on my account like that. No, sir. Most would hold that over my head until the day I died."

"Cough syrup," he said.

"Oh!" she darted into the kitchen and fished it out of a cabinet. "Here you go, sir." She winked at him. "Pleasant travels in the caves."

He gave her a lopsided grin and left.

He just liked being outside the basement.

He just needed the breathing space.

She was a normal.

**Now who here didn't see an OC romance coming on? Go ahead, raise your hands. Ha! Now review, little monkeys! Don't make me sell you to Irish farmers! I can do that!**


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